


Better Make It Count

by lookatthesefreakinghipsters



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Elections, F/F, Femslash, Friends to Lovers, New Relationship, Post Episode S11E12, Previous One-Night Stand, Wayward Daughters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-11
Updated: 2016-07-11
Packaged: 2018-07-22 20:32:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7453018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookatthesefreakinghipsters/pseuds/lookatthesefreakinghipsters
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sheriff elections are coming up in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Jody, Alex and Claire are campaigning for Jody's re-election.  But when a friend comes to town to offer some support, Jody finds her life about to change a lot more than she anticipated.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Better Make It Count

**Author's Note:**

  * For [8sword](https://archiveofourown.org/users/8sword/gifts).



> So, while I was volunteering in the last election, I realized that the position of sheriff is elected in the States (I still don't entirely understand why or how this is a positive thing, but I digress), which meant I just had to write a political fic about Jody! I did research on it (and drew upon my own experiences with/knowledge of local politics), but I'm not American, so I apologize if anything doesn't quite ring true!
> 
> Big thanks to 8sword, who encouraged me, even though I took ages to finish it! You are awesome!
> 
> If you like this, consider checking out my [tumblr!](http://lookatthesefreakinghipsters.tumblr.com/)

Claire sighed as she collected the stack of brochures from the truck of the car. “This is getting old,” she muttered to Alex, who was standing next to her, and then handed her about half of the stack.

Alex shrugged. “Yeah,” she agreed, “but it’s not like we were going to be doing anything else.”

“Whatever,” Claire said, moodily. She pointed to the far side of the street from where she had parked the car. “You got that side?”

“Sure.”

“Yeah. Meet you back at the car?”

Alex nodded. “See you in a bit.” She walked across the street and up to the first house, a charming one-floor house, complete with a white-picket fence. Unconsciously, she scowled at the house and the garden as she walked by it. Walking up the stairs, she grabbed the top brochure, with Jody’s picture on it and the words “Experience, Dedication, Community Service” in blue, from the pile in her arms and deftly slipped it into the crack of the door.

The door behind her opened as she was heading down the stairs, noticing that Claire was already on her second house and feeling slightly annoyed at her out a vague sense of competition. “Excuse me,” an angry voice said to her.

Turning, Alex demanded, “Yeah?”

An older woman stood on the porch, Jody’s brochure outstretched in her hand. “I don’t want this. I won’t be voting for a woman who takes in a miscreant child for sheriff. If she can’t sort out that girl, she can’t very well sort out this city!”

Alex’s blood boiled, but she smiled and took the pamphlet from her. “I’ll let her know that she won’t have your vote.”

“Good,” the woman replied. “She shouldn’t even be running. She should be ashamed of herself.”

“Just so I get this right,” Alex said, “She should be ashamed of herself for giving troubled teenagers a loving home?”

The woman shifted uncomfortably.

“Are you a Christian?” Alex asked, the smile still on her face, but her teeth showing a little too much to be called friendly.

“Well, yes,” the woman replied, affronted.

Alex smirked, “So you believe, as a Christian, that Jody Mills is unfit to be sheriff because she opened her home to a troubled teenager who needed a home?”

“That child is awful!”

“And Sheriff Mills is trying to help put her on the right path. Maybe you should ask yourself, ‘What would Jesus do?’”

The woman huffed at Alex and went back inside, slamming the door behind her. Alex headed off to the next house, humming a half-remembered hymn she had heard somewhere.

Walking up the street, she worked her way through the stack of brochures. Getting to the end of the street, she crossed over and walked back to the car and found Claire waiting for her there, a cigarette hanging out of her mouth. “Put that out,” Alex said, annoyed.

“Why?” Claire said.

“Because when we are out volunteering, we’re representatives of Jody. And we have to make her look good, not like we’re delinquents.”

Claire pulled the cigarette out and threw it onto the ground, stepping on it. She shrugged, “We are delinquents. And Jody’s been sheriff for twelve years, she’s not going to lose this. People love her.”

Alex sighed, torn. “I’ve been getting complaints.”

“Oh?”

“About you. People are telling me if Jody can’t control you, she’s not qualified to be sheriff.”

“Me? What about you? You’re the pothead, Alex!”

Alex huffed. “Yeah, but they don’t know that. Plus, Jody’s actually got Deputy Haskins running against her this year.”

Claire shook her head and slumped her shoulders as she leaned against the car, pulling her jacket a little tighter. “After everything Jody’s given to this town, you’d think they’d be a little more appreciative of her.”

Alex looked over at the house across the street and saw the woman glaring at her and Claire through the window. Fighting off the urge to flip her off, Alex just said, “Yeah, you would.”

-

Jody sat in her office at the back of the house, piles of papers and brochures stacked around her. A map was pinned to the back wall, with areas highlighted. “Jody!” she heard Alex call out, “We’re home!”

“Back here!” she replied. Alex and Claire showed up in the office a few minutes later and handed her back the undistributed pamphlets. Claire grabbed the highlighter and highlighted a four-block area of the map. “Thanks girls, I really appreciate this.”

Alex looked at Claire and raised her eyebrows. Claire shook her head minutely, to which Alex raised her eyebrows again. Claire sighed and mouthed, “Fine.” Alex left the office quickly, closing the door behind her.

Claire sat down and faced Jody, who had a bemused look on her face. “What's that about?” Jody asked.

Claire looked down at the desk and started pulling at a splinter in the wood with her thumbnail. “Alex’s been told that people aren’t going to vote for you because of me. Because they don’t want you as sheriff because I’m so bad and that you must be a bad guardian because I’m a delinquent.”

Jody felt a laugh escaping her, but the laughter died on her lips once she saw the serious and unhappy look on Claire’s face. She shook her head and said, “There’s a lot of miserable people in this town and they don’t have much respect for me or the work I do. You’re just their newest excuse. The main reason why they wouldn’t vote for me last time was because I was, ‘…a bit full of myself.’”

Claire smiled a little and nodded. “Thanks,” she said. 

As Claire started to leave, Jody said, “If they don’t want to vote for me because of you, they can go to hell.”

Claire paused at the desk and gave her a small smile and left. Jody looked back to her computer and deleted a section of the speech she was working on and started typing anew.

-

The Town Hall was surprisingly packed, considering how in past elections only a few townspeople had ever bothered to show up. Alex and Claire sat in the front row, watching as people filed in, many stopping to shake Dave’s hand as he stood near the door. Jody was seated at the front of the room, ready to start the debate. Alex tried to signal her to work the crowd, but Jody was deep in her notes, reviewing them. “I don’t think I like this,” Alex whispered in Claire’s ear. “My stomach feels sick.”

“Me too,” Claire replied as she tried to get Jody’s attention again.

“This seat taken, ladies?” a voice intruded on her thoughts, and she looked up at it. A blonde woman stood above her.

“No,” Claire started to say, as Alex said at the same time, “Donna!” Alex stood up and wrapped her arms around the other woman in a big hug. Claire was taken aback, considering how little Alex liked to have physical contact with other people.

“I’m Donna,” she said after Alex had let go of her, “I’m a friend of Jody’s. Are you Claire?”

Claire nodded and put her hand out. “Oh, forget that,” Donna said, “How about a hug?”

“Uh, sure,” Claire said, getting up and giving the other woman a quick hug.

As she let go, Donna sat down next to Alex and waved at Jody, who lit up when she saw her and waved back. “I’ve heard so much about you Claire, I’m plum happy to finally get to meet you.”

“Wait,” Claire said, connections clicking in her brain, “you’re Donna, from Minnesota!”

“That I am! Met Jody about a year back and I thought I would come by for the debate. Moral support, ya know. I know what it’s like to have a tricky campaign to run.”

As she said that, a small man wearing glasses with a spreading bald spot stepped up to the podium. “Ahem,” he said into the microphone, “for those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jim Williams and I’m the president of the library. I’ve been asked to moderate this debate between Jody Mills and Dave Haskins for the position of sheriff. The format will be to allow each candidate two minutes for opening statements and then there will be 30 minutes of questions from me and from the audience, which will allow for a debate format. This will be followed by a five minute closing statement read by each of the candidates. A coin flip backstage determined the speaking order for the statements. Opening statements will start with Mr. Haskins, followed by Sheriff Mills and closing statements will also start with Mr. Haskins and be followed by Sheriff Mills. So, let’s get this evening started, Mr. Haskins, if you please.”

Dave Haskins stepped up to the podium and adjusted the microphone. “Good evening. Thank you all for attending. Though I have worked with Jody for many years and have nothing but the greatest respect for her, ladies and gentlemen, Sioux Falls needs a change. Sheriff Mills has done great work through some sizable challenges.” He paused for a moment as the audience thought about the events of the last few years. The people who had died when the dead rose. The other mysterious, unexplained phenomenon that had centred around the old Singer Salvage yard. “But we need a change. A change of attitude for this city. A change in leadership. A leadership that will be more open. And communicate more with the people.”

He paused for breath and smiled when he saw several heads nodding in agreement. “I can be that leadership for this city. I grew up here and I love Sioux Falls and will bring that love to everything that I do as Sheriff. I will be that open leadership. Thank you.” There was polite applause with a few scattered enthusiastic applauders.

As Haskins sat down, Jody stood up and walked over to the podium. Adjusting the microphone slightly to accommodate her height, she scanned the audience and found the girls and Donna. Jody smiled at them, and Donna gave her a cheerful smile and a thumbs-up. “Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for attending. Since I first became Sheriff twelve years ago, I’ve only had a handful of debates, so I appreciate you all coming out for this and for your engagement in this community.”

“Twelve years,” she continued, then paused for effect. “That’s a long time. Such a long time that I remember Mr. Haskins as a freshman in my first year as Sheriff. Not as a criticism, because Mr. Haskins has become a fine deputy and an excellent addition to the force. I value the work he has provided to the office greatly. However, I bring, as my record, twelve years of experience as Sheriff and six years before that as a member of the Sioux Falls Police Department. I have the experience and the knowledge to deal with the unique challenges of Sioux Falls. We have all had…” she paused momentarily, before continuing, “trials in this city.”

“I am proud to be a resident of Sioux Falls and I am proud of the work I have done to protect this city,” she stressed the word ‘protect’ ever-so-slightly, “I am proud to have those experiences. I am proud of the team I have led. I am proud of the work that they have done. I know that my experience and leadership will help to keep Sioux Falls, the town I love, safe. I thank you for your time this evening.”

She went and sat back down, the applause in the Town Hall a little louder than it was for Haskins, though that may have been down to Donna’s noisy cheering.

A short line had started as she sat down at the microphone in the centre of the room. Jim got back up to the podium and announced, “Thank you both for your opening statements. We will now open the floor to questions from the audience. Helen, why don’t you go ahead.”

The first person in line, an elderly woman who Jody recognized as constantly calling the police over the noise complaints about her neighbours, whispered into the mic, “Now, I’ve been having problems with noise from people in the neighbourhood,” she paused to glare at a young couple a few rows back, “and I haven’t seen this fixed yet. Why should I vote for you, Sheriff Mills, when I can’t get a decent night’s sleep? And what will you do, Deputy Haskins, to fix this?”

Jody felt a headache coming on and she glanced over at Haskins, who looked like his right eye was starting to twitch. She smiled at the audience and stood up as she replied, “Thank you for your question. I understand that sometimes neighbours can be difficult. I’ve had neighbours who liked to throw parties and it was frustrating. I want to say that I sympathize, but we must apply the law fairly. We provide warnings and fines when necessary. We’re not going to cart people off to jail because they have a few people over once in a while.” She paused and looked at the couple who Helen complained about. “That being said, we expect the citizens of Sioux Falls to be considerate of their neighbours and to respect the quiet hours of the community whenever possible.”

Deputy Haskins stood up as Jody sat down and said, “I agree with Sheriff Mills. We must maintain order with dignity and respect in this city.” He opened his mouth like he wanted to add something, then closed it and sat down.

Helen left with a bit of a huff of annoyance. The next person went to the mic as Donna leaned over and whispered to Claire, “She did well, didn’t she?” Claire nodded, the butterflies in the pit of her stomach starting to ease.

Most of the questions had to do with the normal affairs of the city and as they continued, it was clear that Jody was waltzing all over her opponent, who agreed with her for the most part. The only difficulty she had encountered was when she was asked why she hadn’t taken any steps to condemn the old Singer place so it could be cleared out.

Finally, the question period came to a close, with Jim announcing that they would take one more question and then go to closing statements. A tall, middle-aged man came up to the mic and announced, “I don’t know how many people here know me. My name is William McDonald and my son was god-damn threatened by one of Sheriff Mills’ foster children. I wanted to press charges, but Sheriff Mills tried to block me!”

Jim blinked owlishly at the man and asked, “Uh…do you have a question?”

“Yes! I want to know why we should vote for a Sheriff who misuses her power!”

The tone of the crowd tensed, previously bored faces suddenly paying attention. Jody stood up and look at Claire, Alex and Donna. “You’re right,” she announced, “I did work to keep a young woman out of jail. Claire has gone through a considerable amount of trauma in her young life and doesn’t always react the way that other people do. Claire, realizing that there was a pattern to the disappearances in the Bradon Point area, did something very stupid and reckless in her confrontation of your son. I had told her to leave it to us, but she was afraid that someone else would get hurt. While I can’t defend Claire taking the law into her own hands and threatening your son, I can only plead, as I would for any young person who has gone through the type of difficult life that Claire has and whose heart is in the right place, for sympathy. She is a good young woman and I am proud to say that she has become like family to me. Claire has provided assurances that this will never happen again. Right, Claire?”

Claire stood up, nodded and glanced over to the man at the microphone. She said, “I’m so sorry, Mr. McDonald,” her eyes started to tear up, “I just didn’t want to see anyone else hurt.”

Jody saw the man shifting uncomfortably in front of the microphone, and he nodded, and replied curtly and gruffly, “Don’t let it happen again.”

“I promise,” Claire said, blue eyes wide and making her look younger than she was. As she sat down and wiped at her eyes, Alex had to work to keep a smirk off her face at Claire's crocodile tears. The audience's tension seemed to dissolve and some approving-sounding whispers echoed through the crowd.

“Okay,” Jim said, “seems like a good time for some closing statements. Mr. Haskins, if you care to start.”

“Thank you,” Mr. Haskins said, as he took to the microphone. “Again, I want to say how much I respect I have for Sheriff Mills. She’s been a strong Sheriff and has done a lot for the city, but I think that after so many years, it’s time for a change. It’s time for a more open Sheriff’s department. It’s time for some new blood. I love this city and I want to make the Sheriff’s department a partnership with the city. I have the new leadership that we need in this city for Sheriff. Thank you.”

Jim motioned for Jody to make her closing statement as the crowd applauded, so she took the microphone and said, “Thank you all for coming out tonight. I would like to thank you all for your questions and your attendance. It’s not a lot of Sheriffs who can say that they have a city that cares so much, but I can. And I believe in this city. I have the proven experience and leadership that this city needs. We all know the challenges that have faced Sioux Falls and will continue to face this city. We have a great team and I am very proud of all the work done by the Sheriff’s department, including Mr. Haskins, and I think I am the best person to continue to provide that leadership. I ask you to consider my record and to consider all that I have worked towards in this city and to vote for me. Thank you for your company this evening.”

The crowd applauded politely and people started to filter out of the room. Donna walked over to where Jody was standing surrounded by a few people who had come over to tell her they were planning on voting for her. “Well, hey there Jodio,” she said after Jody finished talking with the voters.

“Donna,” Jody said, smiling. Donna wrapped her in a tight hug. “You look great,” she added. Donna had her hair down in a soft waves, not pulled back severely as she normally did, and was wearing a nicely fitted purple wrap dress, which clung to her curves.

“Flatterer,” Donna said, smiling. “You did great there, Jod-ster!”

“You think so?”

“I know so! If I could vote here, I’d be voting for you.”

Jody laughed and said, “I’m pretty sure you’d be voting for me, regardless of how tonight went.”

Donna laughed her twinkling and effervescent laugh. “Maybe.”

“Where are you staying?” Jody asked.

Donna waved her hand vaguely, “I just got into town, was just going to check into the one of those motels off the I-29.”

“Nonsense,” Donna said, “we’ve got lots of room, you’re staying with us.”

“Well, darn, thanks Jody! Are you sure I won’t be imposing?”

“Of course not. You know you’re always welcome with us.” Looking over, she saw Alex and Claire talking to some of their friends from town. “Come on,” she said, “let’s get Alex and Claire and head out.”

Glancing over, she saw the girls in conversation with a couple of people she recognized from the school. Alex headed over and said, “Hey Jody, we’re going to go out for food and shakes. That cool?”

“Of course,” Jody said, smiling. “Be back by 11, though, okay girls?”

Alex nodded, seriously. Too seriously for Jody’s liking, Alex had been able to relax a bit, but that was before Claire had had to cut Alex's boyfriend’s head off, so Jody figured she could be forgiven for relapsing into seriousness. “Have fun, girls!” Donna said with a cheery wave.

“Well, it looks like we have the house to ourselves for a bit tonight,” Jody said, unable to suppress a slightly flirtatious tone.

“Wanna go back to your place and have a drink?” Donna said, her cheeks dimpling as she smiled.

Jody laughed, “Sounds good to me,” as she hooked her arm around Donna’s and headed out to the parking lot.

-

Jody opened the bottle of white wine Donna had brought with her, a medium-bodied Chardonnay, and poured two glasses. Bringing them out to the living room, she found Donna curled up on the couch, her knees tucked underneath her. Passing her the glass of wine, she asked, “How've you been, Donna?”

“Good,” her friend replied. She took a sip of wine as Jody sat down next to her, one couch cushion between the two women.

A not-unawkward silence descended between them. Donna sighed and took a large gulp of her wine. “I’m just gonna address the elephant in the room. I’ve missed you. A lot.”

“I’ve missed you too. And after your last visit, I had hoped…” Jody said, trailing off, looking at Donna, who stared at her with wide, earnest brown eyes. “You know what, Donna, I’m too damn old to beat around the bush. I like you. I don’t want last time to be a one-time thing. But I don’t want you to give up your life and now with the girls, I can’t give up my life here either. I think that we can have a relationship, on the terms we have open to us. If that means we don’t see each other that often and set up Skype dates and see where this takes us in time, so be it.”

Donna grinned and added, “Yeah, I’d like that.” She leaned over, over the safety of the couch cushion between them and kissed Jody on the lips, gently and softly. Breaking off, she said, “I think I’d like to see where this goes, too.”

“Hopefully it goes to the bedroom,” Jody said, smirking, eyebrows raised. Donna laughed and she leaned in again, kissing Jody firmly as she shifted her body to press against Jody’s. Jody pulled her closer and ran her hand against her back.

Breaking away for a moment, Donna laughed and whispered, “Here we are, making out on the couch like a couple of gosh-darn teenagers.”

Jody pitched her voice a little higher and asked, “You wanna go to second base?” And giggled.

Donna pulled herself onto Jody’s lap, straddling her legs, and yanking her dress up a little to reveal her legs. Jody ran her hands over Donna’s legs, they were soft, but strong muscles lay just underneath, and she traced her fingers up to Donna’s panties, lined with lace, running her fingers under the elastic band, while Donna moaned as she kissed Jody. Glancing at clock, she noticed the time. “How about we take this upstairs? In case the girls get home early,” she asked.

Donna nodded and smiled, getting off Jody and extending her hand to help Jody up. Jody took her hand and standing up, took Donna into her arms, the roughness of her police uniform a stark contrast against the silky material of Donna’s dress. Kissing her gently, Jody then led Donna into her room and closed the door behind them carefully.

-

Claire and Alex ran into the house, having had to make a break for the front door to escape the rain that had just started up. Claire stripped off her soaking wet jacket and Alex kicked off her shoes as she glanced towards the living room for Jody and Donna. The lights were off and they weren’t there. Alex furrowed her brow, a cold tendril of worry and concern gripping her bowels. A constant, low-grade fear for her friends and adopted family was starting to be become a habit, one she was starting to doubt she’d ever be rid of. Claire started to speak, but as she opened her mouth, Alex hushed her, trying to listen for some noise.

Suddenly, a loud laugh emerged from Jody’s room, upstairs, loud enough to be heard even downstairs. The laugh cut off and turned abruptly into a moan, almost more of a cry of pleasure.

Claire’s face turned beet-red and Alex grabbed her shoes and shoved her feet into them. Claire took the hint and grabbed her jacket again, wincing at the cold water. As soon as they were halfway ready, with Alex’s shoelaces still untied and Claire’s jacket only half-zipped up, they ran out the door and Claire used the remote starter on the car while Alex locked the front door behind her.

As they dashed into the car, they sat there in a slightly stunned silence. “Let’s go to Jen’s place,” Alex said, “she’ll let us stay overnight.”

“Good idea,” Claire said. “We’ll text Jody later and let them have their…privacy?” She ended that as a question, not wanting to think about the first person she’d had as a maternal figure in years having sex.

“Yeah, good,” Alex said, feeling much the same.

As Claire turned the key in the ignition, she paused and started laughing so hard she had to put her head against the steering wheel, “It’s just, I never knew that a moan could have a Mid-west accent.”

Alex buried her face in her hands and groaned, “Oh my God, please drive Claire!”

-

The next morning, Jody woke up to a text that said, “Staying at Jen’s place. See you tomorrow!” from Alex. She smiled, proud that the girls had been thoughtful enough to let her know where they were. The bed next to her was cold, and she felt a momentarily flash of sadness, not only that she was waking up alone, but that she was so used to it that it took her a few moments to remember that she probably shouldn’t have been.

Putting on a bathrobe over her pyjamas, she went downstairs, where she heard some broken singing from Donna. The smell of bacon cooking welcomed her as she entered the kitchen. “Oh Jody,” Donna said as she reached out and pulled out a baking sheet with a layer of bacon on it. “Are the girls here? I didn’t want to cook too much if they were out or having a lazy morning.” She was wearing the spare pair of pyjamas that Jody had offered her last night before they fell asleep.

“No, they stayed out at a friend’s. That smells great, Donna.” As Donna was pulling down plates from the cabinets, Jody walked up behind her and wrapped her arms around Donna’s waist, her chin resting on her shoulder.

Donna smiled and put the dishes down on the counter. Turning around in Jody’s arms, she put her hand onto the back of Jody’s neck, her fingertips buried in Jody’s short hair. Pressing her lips against Jody’s, she moved her other hand downwards until it reached Jody’s bum, which she squeezed impishly.

Breaking off the kiss, Donna laughed and said, “So much for breakfast in bed. You just had to go and wake up and ruin it!”

“I could go upstairs and we could pretend I didn’t wake up yet.”

Donna laughed, “Or you could give me a hand and go and make some toast.”

“Guess I could do that,” Jody replied, letting go of the blonde woman in her arms with some reluctance. Grabbing her bread out of the breadbox, she asked, “How many slices Donna?”

“Two,” Donna replied, cracking an egg carefully into a bowl in front of her. A pan was pre-heating on the stove. Finishing up with the eggs, she washed her hands quickly before adding some milk to the mixture as Jody put four slices of bread in the toaster. Beating the eggs with a fork, she then added it to the pan and quickly scrambled them.

Jody grabbed the plates and added the bacon to them. Getting out her coffee, she started it percolating as Donna wrapped up with the eggs. Jody took a moment to reflect on their morning and how seamlessly they had worked together. It was something she hadn’t had in years and it made her feel warm, but a little sad, as memories of her husband always did.

As the toast popped up, Jody took them out and added them to the plates, as Donna poured herself a glass of orange juice. “Care for a cup, Jod?” she asked.

“I’m good. I’m going to bring these out to the table,” she replied, carrying the two plates as Donna grabbed cutlery, her juice and some napkins and followed her out. Jody set the plates down and then went back to the kitchen, grabbing the butter, a jar of peanut butter and some jam, balancing them in her arms. Getting back to the dining room, she sat down next to Donna and put the condiments down.

Donna grinned and pressed a kiss against Jody’s cheek, just to the left of her lips, before grabbing some peanut butter and spreading it on her toast. 

They sat in a comfortable silence as they ate their breakfast, both with the gusto that comes the morning after a night of vigorous activity.

After a few minutes, Donna grabbed her glass of juice and took a sip, glancing over at the brochures which were strewn on the far end of the table. “This kid going up against you?” She asked.

“What about him?”

“You’ve told me about what’s happened here, in the past, with the supernatural. What does he make of it?”

“Don’t know if he makes anything of it,” Jody said, sitting back a little and glancing at Donna. “Some things don't get talked about in this city. But, the dead rose in this city. If people can’t put two-and-two together, then they’re not ready to know more about what’s really out there.”

“But…” Donna started, then trailed off.

“What?” Jody asked, gently. Donna always seemed to manage to drive the causticness out of her voice.

“If he was really young when it happened, and he wasn’t involved, maybe he really just doesn’t understand. Maybe he’s thinking that you’re not sharing information as a power play. But if he wins, he’s going to have a whole new world of opened up to him. Sioux Falls has got more than its fair share of weirdness. Maybe he should go into the election day knowing what he’s in for.”

Jody grabbed her toast and took a bite, pensively.

As they finished off their breakfast, Claire and Alex walked in the door and kicked off their shoes. “Hey girls!” Jody called from the dining room.

“Hi!” Claire called back.

“You girls hungry?” Donna asked, earning a pleased smile from Jody. Jody loved that Donna had a true instinct for caring for the girls.

“No, we already ate,” Alex replied, joining them in the dining room. Claire sat down in the living room, turning on the TV to CNN, her legs curled under her as she leaned against the armrest. “How was your evening?”

Jody and Donna glanced at each other, before Jody replied, “Good. Does anyone want any coffee?”

“Ugh,” Claire replied, “gross.”

“I’ll have a cup,” Donna said, “In fact, I’ll come and give you a hand.”

“I’m fine,” Alex said as Jody and Donna hustled out of the kitchen together. She and Claire looked at each other, a knowing smirk on both their faces. Alex joined Claire on the couch. “I’m happy for them,” she said.

“Me too.”

“We're still going to tease them, right?”

“Oh yeah,” Claire grinned. “There will be so much teasing.”

-

Jody sat in her office as Donna and the kids were watching a movie in the living room. Jody smiled as she looked over at them, amazed at how easily Donna had been able to slide into their odd little family. She could see Donna laughing at something that Alex had said, her head and long blonde hair thrown back, her dimples appearing. Seeing Donna like that gave Jody the last bit of resolve she needed.

Drawing in a fortifying breath, she picked up her phone and dialed. The phone rang a few times before a voice answered, “Hello?” it said, warily.

“Deputy Haskins,” Jody said, then paused, “Dave. I was wondering if we could set up a private meeting to discuss some things about the election.”

“Uh…” Haskins said, trailing off in confusion, and a slight amount of suspicion.

“I promise you,” she replied, “you’ll want to hear about this. I have no problem with you running, I really don’t. I just want to make sure that you know everything about this city before the election.”

“Alright,” he said, and Jody closed her eyes in thankfulness. “Friday at 2pm?”

“Works for me,” she said. “I’d like to meet at Singer Salvage.”

“Alright,” he said. “See you later Sheriff.”

“Talk to you later,” she replied, and hung up.

-

Donna and Jody stood at the front of the burned and dilapidated Singer Salvage. “You okay?” Donna asked, seeing Jody’s face.

“Don’t come out here much. Sometimes when there’s kids trespassing, but I don’t like to be here. Bobby was my friend. Maybe he could have been more than my friend. And now he’s dead and everything he built and loved is gone. Except for Dean and Sam. I suppose that’s something.” She paused and then continued. “Still, it’s hard to see this place like this.”

Donna’s fingers tentatively laced between Jody’s, a gentle grip. They stood like that together until another car drove up.

Letting go, Donna said, “Let’s blow this kid’s mind.”

Dave Haskins got out of the car and walked over. “Sheriff Mills,” he said, respectfully.

“Deputy Haskins,” she replied with a polite nod. “This is Sheriff Donna Hanscrum. She’s from Minnesota.”

“Mighty pleased to meet you,” Donna said, thrusting her hand for Haskins to shake. He took her hand tentatively.

“Good to meet you,” he said, taken aback by Donna’s sunniness. Letting go of her hand, he crossed his arms and asked, “What am I doing here Jody?”

“I know you’re a good deputy and, in time, will be an excellent sheriff,” Jody started.

“Let me guess, just not here and now?”

Jody shook her head. “This is not about that. It’s about the weird crap that happens in Sioux Falls and in other places. If you’re going to continue to be a good officer and you want to become sheriff, you’re going to need to understand some more things about the world.”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Look, you wanted the police department to be more open, so I’m being open with you.” She glanced over to Donna, who nodded.

Donna added, “There’s stuff out there, in the world. The type of things that go bump in the night. The world is far more weirder than you could possibly imagine.”

Jody continued, “We brought you here because Bobby Singer knew about these things. He helped stop them. And he died because of it.”

“Is this some sort of threat?” he asked tremulously, horror and suspicion seeping into his voice.

“No,” Jody said, shaking her head sadly. “I’m trying to make you understand how serious what I’m telling you about is. If I’m going to tell you more, you need to understand the gravity of this.”

“The gravity of what? Jody, this is nuts, you bring me out to an abandoned junk yard that used to be owned by a crazy old drunk and make a bunch of ominous and veiled threats. What the fuck am I doing here for?”

Donna said, “You’re here, because monsters are real. We’ve seen them. We’ve fought them. And if you want to be sheriff of Sioux Falls, you’d better be ready for them too.”

Haskins stepped back, “You’re crazy.”

“She’s not,” Jody said. “Dave, remember six years ago? The dead came back in this city. My own son. My…” She swallowed hard. “My son was one of them.”

“That was just some sort of city-wide delusion. Something in the water. The dead don’t come back to life.”

“They can. They did. And there’s more than that.”

“There’s vampires,” Donna interjected. “Vampires with real fangs. There was one who was killing people in Hibbing. I saw them.”

“There’s no such thing as vampires.”

“Come on Dave,” Jody said, slightly impatiently. “You asked for the truth. You asked to know more. This is the truth.”

Donna looked at Haskins and said, “Come with me,” pulling the younger man away from the front of the destroyed house to what was once the backyard. There was three men and Claire standing there. “Hey Dean, Sam!” she called out as they approached.

Claire and one of the men, the one wearing a beige coat were talking, serious looks on both their faces. The other men waved at Donna. As they approached, the tallest man put out his hand for Haskins to shake. “Sam,” he said. “This is Dean, and Cas. I understand that Donna and Jody wanted to talk about some stuff.”

“You’re all fucking nuts.”

“Maybe,” Dean said, gruffly, but with a note of humour in his voice, “but that doesn’t mean it’s not true.”

Claire added, “It’s completely true. I think you know it is, too, Deputy Haskins. Deep down, you know that this makes so much more sense. All the unexplained deaths? All the people who have gone missing over the years? Doesn’t it make more sense than a mass delusion?”

“I mean,” Haskins added, uncertainty in his voice, “I need proof.”

“Cas,” Dean said as the man in the coat stepped forward, “You’re up.”

“Punch me,” Cas said.

“What?”

“It won’t hurt me.”

“That’s crazy.”

“I promise you,” Cas said, sincerity in his eyes and gravel in his voice, “punch me. And you’ll have your proof.”

Haskins felt a moment of madness, surrounded by people telling him monsters were real. His mind whirled at the situation and before he even realized he was doing it, he wound up and punched the man in front of him.

And then he found himself on the ground, cradling a broken hand. “What the hell?”

Claire laughed. “Claire!” Jody chastised.

“I’m sorry,” she said, giggling a little. “It was just funny.” Crouching down, she said to Haskins, as she pointed upwards. “Not hell.”

“I’m an angel,” Cas said as he crouched down next to Haskins, taking Haskins’ hand in his own. A blue-white light glowed around it and Haskins felt his pain recede, relief flowing through his body.

Claire offered her hand and helped pull Haskins up. He looked dazed. “It’s okay,” she said. “It’s really okay. I promise, it's okay.” 

"This can't be real," he said as he stared at his hand. "Angels."

Claire laughed. "Trust me, angels are real. This is Castiel, he's a cool angel. I guess. Well, when he's not being a dork," she added. Castiel looked both pleased and slightly wounded at that.

Dean stepped forward and said, "Sioux Falls has had more than its fair share of monsters and demons over the years. But it's been alright, with people like Bobby and Jody looking after it. And now, you. If you want to."

Haskins flexed his hand, which felt perfect, as though it had never been hurt in the first place, swallowed and nodded.

-

Haskins had gone home that day, to think about everything they'd told him. Dean, Sam and Cas had left as well, laden down with some of the left-overs from the previous night's dinner.

A few hours later, Jody had received a phone call that he wasn't ready to be sheriff and that he'd be dropping out of the election. He'd also asked for additional training with Jody to learn more, which Jody promised she'd schedule in with him.

"He'll be a good sheriff," Donna said after Jody hung up on the phone.

Jody nodded. "One day." She looked up at Donna, who was sitting on her desk as Jody sat at the chair. "Are you driving back home tomorrow?"

"Yeah, probably head back around noon."

"I'll miss you," Jody said.

Donna smiled and leaned down to kiss Jody. "I'll miss you too," she said.

Jody deepened the kiss, gripping Donna's hips. "But we've got the whole rest of the evening," she said with a smirk as broke off the kiss for a moment.

"Better make it count, doncha think?"

And they did.


End file.
